If you haven't done the practice test on the website (intentionally a bit harder than the actual SAT), and you haven't seen an ACTUAL SAT, I strongly urge you to spend a couple of minutes and download the FREE sample test from www.collegeboard.com . You should NOT take the test the night before the test, but at the very least leaf through the various sections to get a sense of the overall “feel” for the test.
Click here to read Adam's thoughts on the March 12th SAT test.
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May 19th, 2005 - IMPORTANT SAT INFORMATION
This post contains a lot of very important information, so I strongly recommend that you print it out and save the post for reference, you may even want to give a copy to your parents so that they can do any necessary follow-up for you.
Since there's so much ground to cover, I will simply number the points. Although not every point will be relevant to you, please read the entire post immediately since you may need to take action quickly. I am numbering the points so that if you have any questions for me, you can refer to the specific number in your email.
Note: many of these same points are covered, some in more detail, in the FAQ section of the website.
1. Results from the May tests will be available online at www.collegeboard.com as of May 23. The May SAT held no major surprises, although one of the test versions had a few especially difficult and time-consuming math questions.
2. If you took the March or May SAT and feel your essay was unfairly graded —and I've seen some whopping aberrations—email me an exact transcript of your essay (include any spelling errors, if any, and all punctuation, but you can ignore any words you crossed off) and I'll grade it with RocketScore and let you know how to challenge your essay score and whether it would be worthwhile. You'll find a copy of your actual essay online at the College Board website.
3. If you took the March or May SAT, under no circumstances should you retake the SAT in June. No exceptions; please trust me on this point. Wait until the fall and use the June date to take any SAT Subject Tests you need.
4. Nobody should take three SAT Subject Tests in June. Nobody (if you've already signed up for three, just make sure you leave the exam room after having taken one or two exams). Even taking two subject tests can be risky since if you want to cancel either score, you must cancel both scores.
5. Not all colleges require SAT Subject Tests, and those that do usually require only two—although a few highly competitive schools still require three. Take SAT Subject Tests only in your strong subjects; do not take them “just to see how you'll do.”
6. If you're not sure whether you should take a specific subject test, or if you want to prepare for any one, you must get Real SAT II Subject Tests. It is published by the College Board (who produces the actual subject tests). No other practice book duplicates the content and difficulty of these tests. Unfortunately, it contains only one or two dozen sample questions and a single complete test for each subject—so you want to make sure you take any tests in that book under rigorously timed conditions. If you want any additional practice or review in that particular area, the Princeton Review books are probably your best bet among available review titles (the best and most efficient topic outlines; tests closest to the real thing, although no substitute for the tests in Real SAT II Subject Tests. If your local bookstore doesn't have the book, you can order it directly from Amazon, and I would rush delivery if you're taking any subject tests in June.
7. If you're in 9 th or 10 th grade, remember that if you take a subject test this year you'll be competing against juniors and seniors who are older, wiser (about taking tests), and who may have completed an advanced or AP course in that subject. Unless you're exceedingly strong in that subject, you may be better off waiting to take the test until next year.
8. If you don't have any particularly strong subjects, the Math Ic and the Literature subject tests are not very different from the regular SAT itself.
9. About the Math Ic and IIc subject tests: take the IIc test only if you are doing very well in an advanced math class and scored at least a 700 on the regular SAT Math Test. Otherwise, you're probably better off taking the Math Ic test. Apart from some basic trig, the math on the Ic test is not that much harder than the math on the regular SAT. The great news is that ALL the math techniques you learned (see Math Experience Set 4 in the book) work as well or better on the Ic and IIc tests. Another powerful technique on the math subject tests is plugging in specific points, especially with x or y as 0, on coordinate geometry questions. The first 25 questions will seem relatively harmless and then, suddenly, they'll seem to jump in difficulty. Choose your problems wisely in the second half of the test (see Math Experience Sets 5 and 6).
10. About the Literature subject test: this exam requires no specific knowledge of literature, although a few questions may refer to basic literary terms. The exam consists of reading comprehension of poems and of fiction excerpts. Each passage is followed by eight or nine questions—that “echo” the theme of the passage. As with regular SAT passages, read these passages quickly—be on the lookout for irony and subtext (the difference between what seems to be going on in the passage and what's really going on beneath the surface)—and use very cautious process of elimination on the questions. The poems can be hard to understand so read any poem through twice quickly—you'll probably still be somewhat confused—but then use the questions to reveal what you should have noticed about the poem.
11. About the other subject tests: remember that you have to move quickly! On most tests, you'll have an average of a minute or less per question—some tests have 90 to 95 questions in an hour—so you have to hustle. You can't space out on these tests because the hour is over much faster than you'd imagine. Even if you're a strong history student, for example, it's unlikely that you're used to taking a history test with 90 or 95 multiple-choice questions to complete in an hour.
12. After the June test dates and your school terms are over, I'll send out an email to all sophomore-juniors about what they should do over the summer to prepare for the PSAT, and to all junior-seniors about what they should do to get ready to retake any tests and to prepare their college applications.
Let me know if you have any specific questions I haven't addressed here (but check first in the FAQ section on the website). I get a ton of email every day from students, so if you don't hear from me in a day or two, just send me a gentle reminder—I respond to everyone as soon as I can.
